Nadduli warns govt on land evictions
Veteran politician and member of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party Central Executive Committee Abdul Nadduli has advised President Museveni to harshly deal with land grabbers.
Mr Nadduli, a former Minister without Portfolio and currently serving as senior presidential adviser, warned that the escalating illegal land evictions, some of which are allegedly carried out by government officials and highly connected individuals, have dented some of the achievements of the NRM government.
He said some land grabbers are committing crimes and must be dealt with if the party is to win the majority vote in next year’s General Election.
“Land grabbers are enemies within the NRM government with a plan to overthrow President Museveni if he fails to act before its late. When Mr Museveni decides to remain silent as this merciless group terrorises the powerless citizens, he risks falling with them,” Mr Nadduli said.
He was directing President Museveni’s senior political adviser and personal assistant Milly Babirye Babalanda at a training for NRM party coordinators from the districts of Greater Luweero, Kiboga and Kyankwanzi, at Luweero District Council Hall on Monday.
Mr Nadduli said the same group [of land grabbers] has invaded a section of central forest reserves across the country and are left unpunished.
“This undisciplined and destructive group has failed to conceptualise the reasons why President Museveni and many other Ugandans risked their lives when they went to the bush in the early 1980s to liberate Uganda from bad governance,” he added.
Mr Nadduli urged NRM party leaders and followers to support their party and fight to ensure that power does not go into the hands of Opposition.
“The NRM party has more years to steer Uganda to greater heights. You should not fall prey to intimidation by some of the Opposition individuals who have no capacity to take Uganda to the next level,” he said.
Land has become a sticky issue in many districts in central Uganda where wealthy people with land titles are evicting poor tenants from their ancestral land.
Other evictions
For example in April last year, at least 40,000 residents in 12 villages in Kalungu District, were issued with an eviction order by their landlord.
The residents insist the disputed land measuring 5 square miles in Bukulula Sub-county is their ancestral land and have nowhere to go.
If carried out, the eviction will also affect Brig Augustine Kamyuka Kyazze, the deputy chief of logistics and engineering in Uganda People’s Defence Forces, Kalangala deputy Resident Commissioner Teopista Ssenkungu and Mr Willy Lubega, the Bukomansimbi District community liaison officer. Apart from Ms Ssenkungu who has a residential house on the contested land, the other two own farms.
Law on eviction
A decade ago, Parliament passed the Land Amendment Act 2010, which government said was to protect tenants from illegal evictions.
According to the Land Amendment Act 2010, tenants can resist eviction, especially if they have been paying the annual nominal ground rent. The law allows the tenants to either pay annual nominal ground rent (busuulu) fixed by the minister or by their district land boards.
Landlords need a court order to evict tenants and must notify them before selling their land.
